Dixmoor, Illinois, has a government spending problem. After years of taxing its inhabitants into leaving, resulting in a loss of $600,000 in tax revenue last year, the city has run out of cash to pay for the gas for the town’s police cars. “It’s horrible,” reported Dixmoor Fire Department Chief Thomas Wendt. “My staff had payments bounce today because they didn’t get their checks.” Public Works says that if there is a major snowstorm, the department doesn’t have enough money to pay for the gas to get the roads cleared. The Police Chief says he’s tapped himself personally to pay for gas for the black and whites.

Dixmoor has an unemployment rate in excess of 10 percent, sales taxes of a whopping 9.5 percent, and income taxes of 5 percent. The plurality of households make less than $15,000 per year, and virtually all residents earn less than $100,000 per year. That makes it difficult to adopt the Obama solution: tax the rich. When there are no rich people left, bankruptcy becomes the only solution.

I would have bet Chicago or Rockford would have dropped first with all their big unions.

02-12-2013, 01:20 AM

Rockntractor

What comes next is the police will sit by a nearby state highway and pull over everyone from out of town they get a chance too whether they are breaking any laws or not. Soon people detour far around the towns and don't spend a dime in them. businesses dry up and move and soon there is nothing left but two or three squad cars and a rag tag volunteer fire department.
We had a handful of towns like this in Oklahoma but not so much since the state cracked down on them and made them stop.

02-12-2013, 01:28 AM

Apocalypse

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rockntractor

What comes next is the police will sit by a nearby state highway and pull over everyone from out of town they get a chance too whether they are breaking any laws or not. Soon people detour far around the towns and don't spend a dime in them. businesses dry up and move and soon there is nothing left but two or three squad cars and a rag tag volunteer fire department.
We had a handful of towns like this in Oklahoma but not so much since the state cracked down on them and made them stop.

They have been doing that for better part of a year.

Last year the parks service didn't even bother to open many of the state's parks, min. upkeep.

Speeding ticket in Ill. is over $250, and I've come to notice speed limit signs are missing in areas where their cops like to nail people.

State won't stop them, state needs the money too. Can't aford the police they have now. Only will get worse.

02-12-2013, 01:32 AM

Rockntractor

Quote:

Originally Posted by Apocalypse

They have been doing that for better part of a year.

Last year the parks service didn't even bother to open many of the state's parks, min. upkeep.

Speeding ticket in Ill. is over $250, and I've come to notice speed limit signs are missing in areas where their cops like to nail people.

State won't stop them, state needs the money too. Can't aford the police they have now. Only will get worse.

I don't know the details but they got so out of hand in Oklahoma after the early 80's oil bust that they made a law that tickets could only amount to a certain percentage of a cities income and they put a stop to it.
It basically had become robbing out of town drivers at gunpoint.

02-12-2013, 05:36 AM

RobJohnson

I miss some things about Illinois. Cash strapped towns that can't afford to remove snow is not one of them.

I remember some towns running out of road salt early and not being able to afford to purchase more.